The Treasure of Our Stories
February 22, 2010
Fourth in a series
We are our stories.
While each of us has a unique identity that feels like it comes from inside us individually, we are not separate from our family, our community, our heritage. The stories about what our fathers and mothers did and what was done to them, how they lived and died, where they went and how they lived form the foundation of Jewish identity.
Jewish stories present archetypes and role models. They weave together thousands of years of history. We understand our place from what happened in ancient Egypt, in the kingdom of Judea, through Spain, perhaps Poland and Ellis Island, Israel and our own north shore community. That’s why it is so important to teach our stories to our children and grandchildren, so that they will know who they are too.
We all have stories about our parents when they were young and the pivotal life events that shaped them and brought them together. The small stories are as important as the big ones: the boyfriend or girlfriend who would never have become the spouse but for some incident or friend or lucky bit of timing. We don’t need to hear them often, but we do need to hear them.
We learn morality from stories, not from being told to be moral. We saw what happened when other people behaved in certain ways. The books we read and movies we watch immerse us in other people’s stories, where we pick up grains of truth or wisdom that we can apply in our own lives.
Elie Wiesel wrote: “Jewish history unfolds in the present… it affects our life and our role in society… Were it not for his memory, which encompasses us all, the Jew would not be Jewish, or more precisely, he would have ceased to exist.”
That’s why it matters that we stay in touch with specifically Jewish stories. When we study the same parashah from the Torah year after year, we find new insights and new connections. There are plenty of excellent non-Jewish writers and secular stories. But consider as you pick up that next book or choose that next movie that Jewish stories are often richer and offer greater rewards because we have an innate understanding of where they came from.
Jewish stories not only teach us. They reinforce our identity. They form a foundation for us to create our own stories, which become our own contribution to the endless Jewish narrative.
Kavannah without Attitude
January 16, 2010
This is the third in a series of Jewish religious topics from a lay perspective.
Kavannah refers to mindfulness, intentionality, full engagement. Used to describe religious participation, praying with kavannah means immersing one’s self in the practice and devoting one’s heart, soul and mind fully. Read more
Belief and Faith
December 12, 2009
Second in a series of Jewish religious discussions from a lay perspective.
Though the two words are sometimes used interchangeably, belief and faith are not identical. For those who may be uncomfortable with believing, in a religious sense, the distinction is crucial. Read more
Trading with the Gods
November 28, 2009
Fisrt in a series
When you agree to become Temple president, you start to ask a different set of questions: What’s the meaning of all this? Why do we have a synagogue, and what should it be doing? How do we serve the members? Starting this month and over the coming months, I’d like to share with you some thoughts that have arisen in response to asking these kinds of questions. Read more
Because We Are Jews
October 28, 2009
Delivered to the Congregation by Stuart Cohen, Kol Nidre 5770
Because we are Jews, we are here tonight. Something impels us to worship with our fellow Jews on this occasion. We may embrace it with enthusiasm, or we may not even be sure why we are here. Because we are Jews, we come, knowing that we belong. And being here honors our mothers and fathers and grandparents and all who came before us back into the dim corners of our collective past.
